In the wake of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) will seek to adopt a resolution in support of common sense gun laws at the Thursday, March 1 school board meeting.
The resolution is among many items to be discussed on the Board’s agenda, with resolutions to discuss including a National Middle-Level Education Month and recognizing women via Women’s Herstory Month.
In the resolution in support of common sense gun Laws, the Board “reaffirms and demands that all students have the right to attend schools that are safe from the threat of gun violence.”
The Board will review and improve school safety plans including emergency preparedness as well as work more closely with both the Santa Monica and Los Angeles Police Departments to deter threats.
The resolution adds that the Board will also express to elected officials the Board’s “position that removal of semi-automatic weapons from our civil society is a necessary, crucial, and urgent step in ensuring the safety of our students and staff.”
Additionally, the Board asks elected state and federal legislators to fund schools to better serve students emotionally and mentally, asking to “hire additional psychologists, mental health coordinators, nurses, counselors, and social workers to support student mental health and well-being,” as well as provide funds to help intervene with at-risk youth.
Engaging with youth in many ways is a target for the SMMUSD, specifically getting parents more involved with their student’s lives. The National Middle Level Education Month resolution seeks to focus on students ages 10 to 15 years old, with key goals including “the importance of parents being knowledgeable about young adolescents and being actively involved in their lives,” as well as “the knowledge that every young adolescent should have the opportunity to
pursue his or her dreams and aspirations,” showing younger students that post-high school
educational aspirations are well within the realm of possibility.
Finally, the Board will seek to pass a resolution to recognize “Women’s Herstory Month.” The resolution seeks to celebrate and inform students of women’s accomplishments as well as to provide youth with a “greater understanding of the roles women have played throughout the history of our nation; helping all students understand their responsibilities in protecting and
preserving gender equality.”
Other items on the dais include approving special field trips for students to Buenos Aires
Cordoba, and Rosario Argentina, various facility improvement projects, and recognizing Cesar
Chavez day.
The Board will meet at 1651 16th Street. Closed session begins at 4:30 p.m. open session begins at 5:30 p.m.
angel@www.smdp.com
